I think I am going to give up on the capture from the video, get them out of the safe and re photograph them , have them printed to CD and then I should be able to post them. I have bought them at gun shows and occasionally knife shows for the last 30 years. In the beginning they were reasonable but for the last couple of years they have been rather expensive.

At Queens Park (our Provincial Legislature) ther is a Peregrine family nesting in the eaves. They just gave birth a while back to their 8th set of twins. Help keep the pigeons and squirels under control around the park. Absolutely magnificent birds, could watch then all day,

Just a couple of days ago I reread this forum. I wondered how Jeff has been doing.

We have red tailed hawks that stay in our area and of course there are ospreys. Just recently we have had eagles move back into our area. Boy I have missed them. So now there is a power struggle between the ospreys and eagles. But there are not to many crows in the area now!

Flora

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"Nature always wears the colors of the spirit." -

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair.

K. Gibran

In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks.

John Muir

"Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy, while cares will drop off like autumn leaves."

I too have just reread this topic and it is still just as interesting.I trust all goes well with Jeff and Freedom.

Stayed at a B&B in Blandford, Mass sitting at the breakfast table watching all the birds feeding at the platform feeder, then we notice no more birds, just a sparrow squatting down on the feeder and at first what we thought might be an injured or sick flicker sitting in the apple tree right there. They both stayed for about 5 minutes , very still and hunched, when all of a sudden this hawk came bursting around the apple tree , flew at the sparrow, the flicker takes off, sparrow escapes, hawk pulls a u-turn and gone. Breakfast table excitement.Later that day we come back from our travels and the hostess tells us how she was in the barn when all of a sudden a small bird flies into the barn and hits the window and falls, at the same time a sharp shinned hawk flew in after it and just missed hitting her. Must have been the same hawk looking for a spot of brunch before heading south again.

USN

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Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle. Plato(427-347 BC) Philosopher and Educator

Three things in human life are important: The first is to be kind. The second is to be kind. And the third is to be kind. Henry James (1843-1916) Writer

When I was young, I admired clever people. Now that I am old, I admirekind people. -Abraham Joshua Heschel (1907-1972) Theology Professor

I am glad everyone is enjoying this thread. I too have been wondering about Jeff and Freedom Flora and USN. Maybe Red Feather has heard something and would like to share with us.

USN I would love to see this excitement your able to view. In my travels I did get to see a bald eagle sitting on a fence post this week. They are so big and beautiful it just took my breath away. I saw a couple of falcons which is common but I hadn't seen a bald eagle in a long time.

I am a little confused on Sakers. I have read that they attack birds and then they don’t. Does anyone here use these birds or have anything to add? I came across this article that I thought was interesting. What a beautiful bird.

Sakers What Are The Anyway by Troy Moritz

The Saker is NOT a gyr, there are some similarities, but I don't even believe they are subspecies, as a matter of fact, the idea is ludicrous. My sakerette is very large, 25-27 ounces, when was the last time you saw a 25-27 ounce jerkin? Fine, I know you're saying "but the saker is a smaller subspecies". What about aspergillosis? Sakers are considered the hardiest of all falcons, you can drop a vault on a saker and they will fly the same day. You put a house plant to close to a gyr or say the word "spore" or "bumble-foot" and they are ready for a 1000.00 vet bill. Next, lets talk feather quality. Gyrs have a considerably more brittle feather, they are faster, and have a snappier wing beat. The saker is very soft feathered, its wings are really durable, they love rolling in cover like a harris or accipiter. If anything the saker looks like a peales falcon, have you ever looked at there wings? They have alot of wing load.

My 2 cents worth is in, and Ii've got to tell you, I am curious what the similarities are between gyr and saker. I see a large amount of prarie falcon in my sakerette, they frequently act similar. An interesting study. They did a study in Europe, (mentioned in the book "all my life with hunting birds" by DeBastyai) the study was of six peregrines and six sakers. The peregrines instinctively killed the pigeons at the hack block first, and the sakers the rabbits and gerbils, only when the preferred food was gone would they kill the others. It would be interesting to see if gyrs would also choose pigeons over fur in the same situation.

Just to let you know . I am a member of the RSPB (Royal Society for the Protection of Birds) here in Scotland. I am really into bird watching. We get plenty in the garden and occasionally a Sparrow Hawk. We also have plenty of Buzzards in the area, they nest nearby. One day last year a Sparrow Hawk sat on the fence with the rising sun shining on her, a truly magnificent site. Only once I spotted a Golden eagle, high in the sky riding the thermals, beautiful site.This was near Oban in the west highlands. having found this thread has whetted my desire again to do Falconry...must check out A Bird of prey Centre near us in Cumbernauld.

Hi Rhymer wow that's impressive. I take it you've done falconry before? What a great photo. I haven't seen a lot of birds of any kind it's been so cold here they are nesting up. Have feed out and water. They really like the water when it's this cold. Well below zero fahrenheit. Most of the "smart" birds fly south. lol. "this one is too stubborn" lol. All I have seen recently are Sparrows.

Yes I have seen photo's of the Birds of Prey Centre. It looks like a very good place to learn about falconry. Let us know how things are going for you. And what kind of birds you see. Thanks for posting

Actually must be honest, never done falconry before. Just have a desire to do it. Robin, Thrush,Blackbird,Blue tit,coal tit,Chaffinch,Ring Necked Dove,Stock Dove,Starlings and of course Sparrows, all frequent our Garden this winter. Must not forget the little "Jenny" Wren.